We use the imperative form of verbs to give commands. We use it in circumstances such as getting someone's attention. Even when you are saying mi scusi or scusa (excuse me), you are using the imperative form. On any conjugation chart, you will find the imperative form for a verb, where applicable. For example, the verb andare (to go).
Vai! Va' (imperative form, familiar second person singular). Go!
Vada! (imperative formal second person singular). Go!
Andate! (imperative informal second person plural). Go!
Vadano (imperative formal second person plural) Go!
Andiamo! (first person plural imperative). Let's go.
Vai via, non seguirmi più.
Go away, don't follow me anymore.
Caption 48, Non è mai troppo tardi EP 2 - Part 7
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But there is another common way to form an imperative in certain circumstances. When a command is directed at the public in general, not a specific person, the infinitive is often used. For example, we'll hear the infinitive in a command at a train station:
Attenzione. Allontanarsi dalla linea gialla.
Attention please. Step back from the yellow line.
Caption 7, Sposami EP 2 - Part 26
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In navigating instructions:
Tenere la destra, tenere la sinistra.
Bear right, bear left.
Caption 22, Stai lontana da me Rai Cinema - Part 16
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Instructions for staying safe during Covid-19.
Lavarsi bene le mani con sapone, per almeno venti secondi
Wash your hands thoroughly with soap, for at least twenty seconds,
Caption 54, COVID-19 Domande frequenti - Part 2
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Putting someone on hold.
Attendere, prego.
Wait, please.
Caption 3, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone S1EP3 Vicini - Part 6
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The infinitive is also used for negative informal commands in the second-person singular. So to form a negative command, instead of using non with the conjugated verb, we use non with the infinitive of the verb.
non andare
No, aspetta, aspetta, Lara. Aspetta. Non andare.
No, wait, wait, Lara. Wait. Don't go.
Captions 7-8, Il Commissario Manara S2EP4 - Miss Maremma - Part 1
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non fare così
Avanti, dai, Tiziana, non fare così. Vieni qua.
Come on, please, Tiziana, don't be like this. Come here.
Caption 25, Il Commissario Manara S2EP9 - L'amica ritrovata - Part 7
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non piangere
Dai, dai, non piangere più, calmati un po'.
Come on, come on, stop crying, calm down a little.
Caption 64, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone S1EP1 I Bastardi - Part 4
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non mi lasciare!
Amore, non mi lasciare.
Love, don't leave me.
Caption 74, Sposami EP 2 - Part 18
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non fare lo scemo
Ma non fare lo scemo, dai!
But don't be an idiot, come on!
Caption 27, Un medico in famiglia Stagione 1 EP3 Un cugino in fuga - Part 8
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And when the command is negative and addressed to the general public, the same holds true. Non plus the infinitive.
Non calpestare l'erba (don't walk on the grass).
Non attraversare col rosso (don't cross with a red light).
Think of some commands such as: parla (speak)! And then make it negative: non parlare (don't speak).
Verbs to try: If you're not sure of the right conjugation, look it up in WordReference.
aspettare (to wait), dormire (to sleep), correre (to run), rallentare (to slow down), guardare (to look), etc.
We have talked about pronominal verbs before, and we have mentioned our featured pronominal verb andarsene in a lesson about telling someone to "get lost." But let's delve deeper.
Perhaps if we talk about pronominal verbs often enough, they will be less daunting, and they will start making more sense. Andarsene (to leave, to take one's leave) is perhaps even more common than farcela, which we have talked about very recently, but they are both high up on the list of pronominal verbs to know and love. So let's dive in!
Andarsene has as its main verb, the irregular verb andare (to go). But instead of just going, we add on some particles that make it mean something more. We make it personal with se (oneself), and we imply we are leaving a place, person, or situation, or, we could say, "going away from a place, person or situation" with the particle ne. In this context, ne is a pronoun representing an indirect object with its preposition, all in one!
Se uno sta bene in un posto, embè, deve avere una ragione forte per andarsene, se no...
If one's happy in a place, well, they have to have a really good reason for leaving it, otherwise...
Captions 33-34, Il Commissario Manara S1EP12 - Le verità nascoste - Part 8
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Let's also mention that in a way, andarsene (to leave, to go away from a place) is the opposite of going somewhere — to a place. When we go somewhere, we can use the particle ci (to, in, or at that place) as an indirect pronoun including the preposition. In English, "there" stands for "to/at/in that place."
Hanno suonato alla porta. Ci vado io (the doorbell rang. -I'll go [there]).
It's easy to get mixed up between ne and ci.
When we conjugate andarsene, we split the verb in different ways, depending on the conjugation.
When you simply want to say, "I'm leaving [this place]" you can say:
Me ne vado (I'm leaving).
It's the equivalent of vado via (I'm leaving, I'm going away).
When no modal verb is involved, we generally have the person, the place (from this place) and then the verb in third place, conjugated. The same goes for other persons:
Alle otto se ne vanno a casa e non escono più, come le galline.
At eight o'clock they leave and go home and don't go out again, like hens.
Caption 40, Il Commissario Manara S1EP3 - Rapsodia in Blu - Part 12
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However, if we use a modal verb such as potere (to be able to) or volere (to want to), dovere (to have to), then we conjugate the modal verb and the pronominal verb remains in the infinitive, although the particles may be separate from it.
Ecco perché io non me ne voglio andare.
That's why I don't want to leave here.
Caption 5, Basilicata Turistica Non me ne voglio andare - Part 1
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It's also possible (when there is a modal verb) to mix the parts of the pronominal verb up differently and say:
Ecco perché non voglio andarmene (that's why I don't want to leave here).
In the following example, we have 2 different conjugations. The first one is one word, a command, with the verb root first: the imperative of andare, va', then the person, te, and then our "place" particle, ne. In the second sentence, the modal verb dovere (to have to) is used.
Ricotta! -Oh, vattene! Te ne devi andare!
Ricotta! -Oh, get out of here. You have to leave!
Caption 47, Non è mai troppo tardi EP 2 - Part 7
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Let's remember that the verb andare takes essere (to be) as an auxiliary verb for compound tenses such as the passato prossimo, which conjugates like the present perfect in English. We conjugate the auxiliary verb and the root verb is in its past participle form.
Finalmente se ne sono andati.
Finally, they've gone.
Caption 15, Acqua in bocca Allarme gita - Ep 9
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Practice:
Try thinking of people you know, or can imagine, and combinations of people. 1) They might be leaving a theater or a party... one by one, in couples, all of them 2) They never seem to leave but you would like them to. 3) They have all left. We'll need the passato prossimo for that. Have they left together or in dribs and drabs? Let us know how you do.
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